In the medical care industry, where medical personnel make numerous visits to individual patients, it is necessary for the personnel to ensure proper patient identification before care can commence. Further, the personnel must consult written charts to see what care has been ordered, what medication is to be administered, and what tests must be run. These personnel must then record what care has been provided, the results of the various tests, and the times and dosages of any medications which have been administered. The purpose of the present invention is to automate this procedure in an attempt to eliminate the potential for human error which is inherent in the present procedures. Various attempts at automation of some of these functions of medical personnel have been made, but with limited success because of the failure to devise an overall scheme for total automation and communication of the numerous individuals and offices involved in the total health care process.
The present invention may also be adapted for use by retailers and manufactures or the like. For example, the present invention might be utilized by customer service, sales, and warehouse employees such that customers may locate, purchase, and obtain goods more quickly.